"I'm not one to criticize anyone's faith, and I applaud everyone who has strong faith in anything. However, I think this is absurd," said Mauri Systo, 25, as she pumped $35 worth of gas into her 1995 Dodge Spirit.
Why the prayer for Leno? Twyman, a freelance public relations consultant from nearby Rockville, Md., said the "Tonight Show" host irked him by making a joke that "kind of made us political."
During his July 29 monologue, Leno said: "Hey, have you heard about this group called Prayer at the Pump? They're a prayer group that sprang up, and they go to gas stations and they hold hands and they pray for lower gas prices. Otherwise known as the Bush energy plan."
The quip, Twyman acknowledged, was "somewhat funny." But, he added, "this isn't political at all. There are people here for McCain, for Obama, there are people who are Libertarian."
In these times, he said, faith can't be put in politicians: "It's better to trust in God than to trust in princes."
That goes for Saudi princes in particular. Twyman is circulating a petition asking Saudi Arabia to release an additional 1.2 million barrels of oil a day, an amount he believes would help lower gasoline prices. But his track record with petitions isn't great: In 2005, he organized a petition drive to nominate Oprah Winfrey for the Nobel Peace Prize. She didn't make it to Oslo.
At another Shell station a block away, Leroy Taylor, 56, who stopped to fill his tank, said he had never heard of Pray at the Pump, but supported the concept. He has faith, he said, that the Big Guy considers everyone's prayers.
"Even oil executives'," Taylor said. "He's been answering theirs a lot lately."
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vimal.patel@latimes.com
